JP man hurt as water scooters collide
Two men riding water scooters side-by-side in Boston Harbor slammed together when they were hit by a wave, sending one of them to the hospital with serious injuries, officials and fellow riders said.
The collision happened about 7 p.m. when a group of six riders, who connect through Facebook, met at Malibu Beach in Dorchester, some of the men said.
Anthony Figueroa, 42, of Jamaica Plain, pulled the unconscious man out of the water.
“I seen him about to drown. I jumped off my ski. Threw him on his ski and drove off on his ski. It was pretty rough out there. There were a lot of waves out there. It looked like a wave got them out of control and he hit the other jet skier. He hit him on the side of the ski,” Figueroa said. “It looked to me like he wasn’t breathing. He was just laying there. He wasn’t talking. He wasn’t complaining. He wasn’t moving.”
District fire Chief Erik Pettaway said fire crews met the injured rider at the beach and he was taken to the hospital by Boston EMS with “serious injuries.”
Witness Jeff Escoto said the two water scooters that collided were traveling about 40 mph when they crashed.
“They didn’t even see each other,” Escoto said. “I seen both of them. They flew. One went left. One went right. It was crazy ... They went under, but they both came back up. The life jacket saves you. I just seen him flip, go into the water and my friend pulled him out of the water.”
Lee Thuan said he was on the water scooter that collided with the man most seriously hurt. He said they were riding side by side when a strong wave hit them.
“I was driving with him. The wave hit us and both of us collide together,” he said. “We both collided at the same time the wave hit both of us.”